Sermon Recap for April 17

Another Monday, another sermon recap post…

Yes, taxes come up in this sermon. No, I didn’t plan on bringing up taxes the day before American federal income tax was due. That just happened.

Morning Sermon: 1 Samuel 8 (audio)

 

Evening Sermon: Philippians (audio)

Sermon Recap for April 10

Well, it’s taken a little longer. Sorry about that. We don’t have video from Sunday night because we held the service at Two Rivers Bridge Park. It was a great time. With a nice 20+mph wind, constant. The condenser mic on the camera would have picked up nothing but wind. So you have voice recorder from that but not much else.

Morning Service: 1 Samuel 7 (audio)

 

Evening Service: Philippians 1 (audio)

Reflecting on Seminary

Here we are again, thinking out loud. It’s been about 2 years since I wrapped up my formal education in seminary as I finished my Master of Divinity degree. Besides realizing that Dr. Buckelew, the speech professor at Ouachita, was right along in telling us all to go get an MA in Religion somewhere and then a Ph.D., what else I have learned?

Oh, you want to know why Dr. Buckelew was right? A Master of Divinity (MDiv) takes about 90 hours. A Master of Arts (MA) takes 30. Then, either way you slice it, a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) takes about 60 hours. That means you can either be a master in about 90, or hold a doctorate in about 90. What did I do? Not the smart thing.

That being said, I then spent several years completing what some people consider to be the required education to be a pastor. Whether or not that’s a valid view is another discussion. I did it in a variety of ways. I spent time on campus as a full-time student. I spent time taking intensive, one-week classes on campus. I did independent study courses online. I did online which featured video lecture. I think that I did almost every form of in-person and distance-learning class that was available. I missed out on the hybrid classes where you watch live feed of the classroom and participate via Zoom. My Internet connection couldn’t have handled it, anyway.

What did I learn? Aside from the subject matter you find on my transcript, I picked up these tidbits:

1. Those who want to learn will learn. Among those who have the means to be involved in school, some students want to do learn as much as possible. Some want a degree and to be done. Some want to hide from reality and stay in school.

None of the forms of higher education were exempt from that. There were guys who coasted in the classroom (and yes, they graduated that way.) There were guys who coasted through online life. The only place that really caught out slacking was the 1-week intensive, but you could still slack through the pre/post work.

Each form has limitations (especially if you have a learning style that doesn’t roll well with lecture/classroom), but nothing is more important than the learner’s desire to learner. As a corollary: even those without means to pursue formal education show this to be true. Those who want to know find ways. This is why LIBRARIES are important!

2. There is no substitute for asking professors questions, directly. While I mainly learned that doing Greek (in the 2nd term, after flailing about the 1st,) it’s true in any class. Ask. Clearly, politely, and in an informed manner. Don’t ask questions that are clear in the syllabus, required readings, and lectures. Don’t ask dumb questions like “will this be on the test?” If you want to know about tests, ask “How will my understanding of this be tested?” That gets to the core of whether you should memorize dates, facts, or minutiae…or learn to write a good analysis of those things which shows what you recall and are going to do with it.

That being said, if you are looking at higher education in a place with no access to professors, then look onward. I don’t mean that you should be able to camp on their couch all the time, but find out from students (and not just the handpicked ones admissions shows you) whether they feel comfortable contacting a professor. If they hedge…be aware. You’re possibly on your own. Note that your professors are going to be busy—respect that and don’t waste their time. But seeking help and guidance is not wasting their time. Email is beautiful for this: put all your questions and such together and send it on, waiting patiently for a response in a few days.

And no, “keeping professors in the workforce as well so they stay current” isn’t a substitute for connecting with them. Schools that don’t enable professors to be professors may be cheaper, but you need to evaluate that.

3. There is no substitute for the fellowship of your fellow students. Find a way to make it happen. I fell dreadfully short on this in all forms of education. It’s a lonely trip through, and a lonely time at the end.

4. Get educated and get to work, but do not neglect learning outside of your field. If you’re in the ministry realm realize that you need to work outside of that field enough to know what it would be like to do it for a lifetime. The flock God puts you with is doing just that. And yes, there are still people in churches who are astounded to find out that I used to work 60 hour weeks trying to make ends meet, just like a normal person.

5. Never stop learning. Part of the busy life is learning how to fit personal growth into a stacked-out day. You can shift what you learn, but never stop growing!

Just a few thoughts. Why? Because I’m starting to put together the plan to go back to it. The doors were shut on one plan, so I’m headed to a different plan, but it’s about time to get with it.

Reflecting on Seminary

Here we are again, thinking out loud. It’s been about 2 years since I wrapped up my formal education in seminary as I finished my Master of Divinity degree. Besides realizing that Dr. Buckelew, the speech professor at Ouachita, was right along in telling us all to go get an MA in Religion somewhere and then a Ph.D., what else I have learned?

Oh, you want to know why Dr. Buckelew was right? A Master of Divinity (MDiv) takes about 90 hours. A Master of Arts (MA) takes 30. Then, either way you slice it, a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) takes about 60 hours. That means you can either be a master in about 90, or hold a doctorate in about 90. What did I do? Not the smart thing.

That being said, I then spent several years completing what some people consider to be the required education to be a pastor. Whether or not that’s a valid view is another discussion. I did it in a variety of ways. I spent time on campus as a full-time student. I spent time taking intensive, one-week classes on campus. I did independent study courses online. I did online which featured video lecture. I think that I did almost every form of in-person and distance-learning class that was available. I missed out on the hybrid classes where you watch live feed of the classroom and participate via Zoom. My Internet connection couldn’t have handled it, anyway.

What did I learn? Aside from the subject matter you find on my transcript, I picked up these tidbits:

1. Those who want to learn will learn. Among those who have the means to be involved in school, some students want to do learn as much as possible. Some want a degree and to be done. Some want to hide from reality and stay in school.

None of the forms of higher education were exempt from that. There were guys who coasted in the classroom (and yes, they graduated that way.) There were guys who coasted through online life. The only place that really caught out slacking was the 1-week intensive, but you could still slack through the pre/post work.

Each form has limitations (especially if you have a learning style that doesn’t roll well with lecture/classroom), but nothing is more important than the learner’s desire to learner. As a corollary: even those without means to pursue formal education show this to be true. Those who want to know find ways. This is why LIBRARIES are important!

2. There is no substitute for asking professors questions, directly. While I mainly learned that doing Greek (in the 2nd term, after flailing about the 1st,) it’s true in any class. Ask. Clearly, politely, and in an informed manner. Don’t ask questions that are clear in the syllabus, required readings, and lectures. Don’t ask dumb questions like “will this be on the test?” If you want to know about tests, ask “How will my understanding of this be tested?” That gets to the core of whether you should memorize dates, facts, or minutiae…or learn to write a good analysis of those things which shows what you recall and are going to do with it.

That being said, if you are looking at higher education in a place with no access to professors, then look onward. I don’t mean that you should be able to camp on their couch all the time, but find out from students (and not just the handpicked ones admissions shows you) whether they feel comfortable contacting a professor. If they hedge…be aware. You’re possibly on your own. Note that your professors are going to be busy—respect that and don’t waste their time. But seeking help and guidance is not wasting their time. Email is beautiful for this: put all your questions and such together and send it on, waiting patiently for a response in a few days.

And no, “keeping professors in the workforce as well so they stay current” isn’t a substitute for connecting with them. Schools that don’t enable professors to be professors may be cheaper, but you need to evaluate that.

3. There is no substitute for the fellowship of your fellow students. Find a way to make it happen. I fell dreadfully short on this in all forms of education. It’s a lonely trip through, and a lonely time at the end.

4. Get educated and get to work, but do not neglect learning outside of your field. If you’re in the ministry realm realize that you need to work outside of that field enough to know what it would be like to do it for a lifetime. The flock God puts you with is doing just that. And yes, there are still people in churches who are astounded to find out that I used to work 60 hour weeks trying to make ends meet, just like a normal person.

5. Never stop learning. Part of the busy life is learning how to fit personal growth into a stacked-out day. You can shift what you learn, but never stop growing!

Just a few thoughts. Why? Because I’m starting to put together the plan to go back to it. The doors were shut on one plan, so I’m headed to a different plan, but it’s about time to get with it.

Miracles and More: Matthew 9

In Summary:

Picking up in Matthew 9, we see the Lord Jesus performing miracles at the front and end of the chapter. Matthew is called as an Apostle in Matthew 9:9 and even though he is the author, his story takes barely a verse. He immediately follows up the story of his own calling with reference to the multiple tax collectors and other generic “sinners” that Jesus spent time with. Whether these people came to Jesus because He called Matthew or they were already drawn to the Lord is not clear from this passage. What is clear is the compassion and grace of Jesus and His embrace of those who were outcast from society. Even for those who were outcast by their own choice.

From there, we see teaching about fasting in response to questions, and then more miracles of healing. Matthew 9:18-26 tells the story of healing two women. One a young girl, the other an adult who had suffered for as long as the young girl had been alive. The contrasts are worth noting. For example, the girl’s parents sought out and asked for healing while the woman’s effort was to be healed quietly without bothering Jesus. Jesus takes note of her, though, and does not allow Himself to be just a healer. He will bring Himself into a relationship with those who want to be close to Him.

The chapter wraps with the healing of two blind men, the casting out of demons, and the summary of the need for workers in the harvest. The command to pray for harvesters in Matthew 9:37-38 is often used to encourage evangelism. In context, it is also relevant to compassionate work and overall care for people, as it is a response to seeing the people as “sheep without a shepherd.” Jesus is the Good Shepherd, and our call is to bring people to Him.

In Focus:

Let’s take a closer look at Matthew 9:14-17. There are three key ideas in Jesus’ answer to the disciples of John. First, though, note that this is not a trap question like the Pharisees tended to ask. Instead, it is a reasonable assumption that the disciples of John had no interest in trapping Jesus. They simply needed to understand why Jesus was not requiring His disciples to do as they did.

Here are those three key ideas:

1. As in Ecclesiastes, there is a time for everything (Ecclesiastes 3.) That includes a time to celebrate. It would be wrong for the disciples to weep in the presences of Jesus as if He were not there.

2. That there is a time for everything is also reflected in v. 15 where Jesus highlights that the disciples will fast, when He is taken away from them.

3. The above two are the practical outworking of the major point: not everything follows the same path. Spiritually speaking, there is a time for new things which do not fit into the old ways. That does not allow disposing of what is right: wine still goes into wineskins. Jesus does not tell John’s disciples that God has abandoned everything, but rather uses a metaphor of refreshing and restoring.

In Practice:

How do we make these three keys practical?

1. There is a time in your life, in the lives of others, to celebrate and rejoice. There are times when God has shown grace so greatly that to weep would not only be odd, it would be wrong. And to expect others to weep in those times because their exuberance does not feel right to you? Be cautious you do not force others into your box.

2. There is now cause in the lives of believers for weeping and fasting. We do not do so enough, either privately and secretly or corporately and openly. The church-at-large would do well to recapture the idea of fasting.

3. As we look at what it means to put the new wine into the right receptacle, a key caution is this: the major change in God’s work in this world was effected at the Cross. If you have a “new thing” that is different from the change from Old to New (and it isn’t the Millennial Kingdom of Jesus,) then check it hard against the truth of Scripture. Not against your imagination.

And on the opening observation: some questions are traps and tricks. Most, though, are honest efforts to understand. Remember that.

In Nerdiness:

1. Parallel passages for the healing of the woman and the girl are Mark 5:22-43 and Luke 8:41-56.

2. I find the difference in those two miracles most striking in the publicity. Notice that Jesus deliberately highlights the healing of the woman and speaks positively of her. (Calling her “daughter,” for example.) Everyone in the crowd would have known. But for the girl? He sends the crowd away and then raises her from the dead. Mark records an explicit command to keep this a secret (Mark 5:43.)

Why? Why attempt to keep one quiet and broadcast the other?

3. The Pharisaic complaint in 9:34 is similar to what launches the “House Divided” teaching in Luke 11:17-19.

Book: VIP by O.S. Hawkins

Yes, a book review. I think I remember what how to do these. And as a side note: V.I.P. from O.S. Hawkins? I’m tempted to make this whole thing acronyms and initials!

As is often the case: free book in exchange for the review! No money exchanged, no influence peddled. All opinions are my own, unless my wife tells me otherwise.

What does it mean to live with Vision, Integrity, and Purpose? (Other than the obvious of endorsing the Oxford Comma in the title, that is.) This little book, VIP, from O.S. Hawkins, the President of Guidestone Financial Resources, presents some of what that means. It is a little book, running about 120 pages of actual content with a footprint that’s about 5 inches by 7 inches.

Boiling this book down, what you have is a Biblically-oriented personal empowerment book. Hawkins is addressing, primarily, the first leg of the leadership triangle: manage yourself. The ideas he presents are about getting vision, integrity, and purpose right in our own lives. From there, Hawkins expresses that we become influential people after we become the right kind of person.

Peppered throughout are the two things that help bring the point home: Biblical passages and personal stories. The first connects the principles to the truth, the second demonstrates how to put the ideas into practice. The reading is easy, and the Biblical passages are not wrenched horribly out of context.

Overall, it’s not a bad little book. Having read others in the same leadership/personal growth space, it does not stand out except for its brevity. In this, it’s a good fit for someone whose response to books is “I don’t have time!”

A pretty good gift book for the developing leader in your life.

Again, free book in exchange for the review.

Sermon Recap for April 3

Good morning! Here are the sermons from this past Sunday.

Morning Sermon: 1 Samuel 6 (audio)

 

Evening Sermon: John 3:16 (audio)